You’ll be shocked to hear how different Maine Coons are from your average cat!
In this video, that’s precisely what you’ll see: a spot-on comparison between a Maine
Coon and a “normal” cat.
Before we start, if you’re into cat breeds or cat behavior, this channel is all about
that!
I’m a cat owner myself, and I love to make videos about cats!
And you can be sure I do my best to get you the most accurate information!
Let’s begin!
First, let’s define what a “normal cat” means!
Usually, when people refer to normal cats, they talk about the typical house cat.
Everybody has seen such cats in their lives, so you should have the perfect idea of what
a regular cat looks like.
Usually, house cats are shorthaired, but they can also have longer fur.
And this is the first difference between a Maine Coon and a regular cat: fur, baby, fur!
Maine Coons have a super-dense coat that’s double layered and medium to long in length.
It’s super fluffy but also serves a purpose: it helps these cats survive in freezing temperatures.
Due to their long fur, Maine Coons appear even larger than they are!
But this extra fluff comes at a cost!
Maine Coons need regular brushing sessions, while for domestic shorthairs, these sessions
are not really needed.
Another difference has to do with their ears - many Maine Coons have lynx tips, which gives
them a wild look.
Even if not all Maine Coons have them, regular house cats don’t have lynx tips.
Maine Coons’ ears are on the larger side, while house cats usually have medium-sized
ones.
And let’s not forget about the fluffy hairs that decorate Maine Coons’ ears!
Regular cats can have them too, but for Maine Coons it’s a must.
The best thing to look for is their muzzles - Maine Coons have strong, rectangular ones
and high cheekbones.
On the other hand, the muzzle of a regular cat is softer, and the chin rounder.
Another distinctive feature when comparing a Maine Coon and a typical cat is – the
tail.
Regular domestic cats have a thin, noodle-like tail, while Maine Coons have long fluffy ones.
And here’s a fun fact: some Maine Coons are polydactyl - meaning they have extra toes!
The extra fingers used to be really common in the past; still, it’s much more common
to see polydactyl Maine Coons than polydactyl house cats!
But let’s talk about the reason we’re all here, which is ...their size!
Even without talking about numbers, Maine Coons are usually more muscular and heavily
boned than a regular cat.
An average cat weighs between 8 and 10 pounds, with females being on the lower end.
The same cat has an approximate length of 18 inches if we leave the tail out and an
average height of 9 to 10 inches.
So how does a regular cat compare to a Maine Coon?
Well, it depends!
First of all, not all Maine Coons are big cats, or should I say huge!
On the contrary, Maine Coons weigh between 10 or 12 to 22 pounds, on average.
It’s true that even the smaller Maine Coons are a bit bigger than a regular cat, but sometimes
there’s not a huge difference.
As with regular cats, Maine Coon females are on the lower end.
Why?
Only mother nature knows!
That being said, Maine Coons are amongst the longest, if not the longest, cats in the world.
So you should definitely see a difference in terms of length.
But to help you out here’s a visual comparison between a “small” Maine Coon and a regular
cat.
There’s still some contrast!
But if we move on to the intermediate values, you’ll start to notice a significant difference.
What about bigger Maine Coons?
The bigger Maine Coons are about 22 pounds, have a length of about 32 inches, and a height
of almost 16 inches!
Here’s how they look compared to a regular cat.
Pretty big, right?
But Maine Coons can grow larger than this, reaching 25 to 30 pounds or even more!
And I’m not talking about the overweight ones!
The longest Maine Coon that ever existed had a length of more than 48 inches, tail included,
which is just incredible!
However, not all Maine Coons reach this size; as I said, Maine Coons typically weigh between
12 and 22 pounds.
If you want the best chance of getting a big Maine Coon, look at the kittens’ parents!
The bigger the parents, the higher chances the kitten will be a monster!
Still, it’s no guarantee that the kitten will be huge.
The food matters too - higher quality foods provide all the nutrients a kitten needs to
grow!
Also, males get bigger than females, so take this into consideration!
What are some other differences you absolutely must know?
Well, Maine Coons are more prone to developing HCM than regular cats.
This, unfortunately, can drastically affect the lifespan of your Maine Coon.
Additionally, Maine Coons take a much longer time to mature than house cats!
Maine Coons reach their full size between 3 and 5 years of age.
This means they’ll continue to act like crazy kittens until then!
Also, Maine Coons have a higher energy level than regular cats.
As a result, you’ll need to spend more time entertaining your Maine Coon.
Maine Coons also need larger litter boxes, toys, and cat trees!
Needless to say, these things require more money.
Additionally, Maine Coons love the outdoors and don’t thrive in apartments, especially
in small or medium-sized ones.
But they’re also more intelligent than the average cat!
They can be taught tricks and quickly learn to walk on a leash.
They’re said to be dog-like, and I agree!
However, there’s one question every potential Maine Coon owner needs to answer: should you
get a Maine Coon in the first place?
Well, there are several things to consider!
One would be the space you have, as Maine Coons need relatively big homes!
The other would be if you have other pets or planning on getting one!
Basically, there is plenty of stuff to think about!
But I will also make a dedicated video on the topic, so make sure to subscribe if you’d
like to see it!
In the meanwhile, you can watch my other videos about Maine Coon Cats.
And be sure to check out the super cool Maine Coon T-shirt I designed!
Thanks for watching, and see you in my next video!